Discriminatory

FERC’s proposal to place limits on the participation of regulated public utilities and natural gas and oil pipelines in intra-corporate cash management programs, or money pools, would duplicate existing regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), inflict higher administrative costs on companies and discriminate against smaller jurisdictional entities, companies said.

Calling EPGT Texas Pipeline LP.’s tariffs “discriminatory, monopolistic and anti-competitive,” Falcon Gas Storage Co. Inc. has filed a petition with FERC seeking a rehearing of the recent Commission order that approved the rates, terms and conditions under which the El Paso Corp. affiliate provides transportation and storage services.

Seeking to improve market transparency and provide a better means to detect and discourage discriminatory practices, FERC last Wednesday said that it would replace a number of reporting filings currently made by the power industry with a quarterly electronic report, which the Commission believes will equalize reporting requirements for both traditional public utilities and power marketers and make information more easily available to the public.

Indicated Shippers contend ANR Pipeline’s proposal to providenew hourly transportation services primarily for electricgeneration is discriminatory because the services would be limitedsolely to shippers who are “supplying or obtaining gas” for thatmarket.